Rand van een bos 1848 - 1888

Anton Mauve made this sketch of a forest edge with charcoal on paper, sometime in the 19th century. Mauve belonged to the Hague School of artists who sought to represent the Dutch landscape and everyday life with a somber, realist style. In this drawing we see that he's capturing a sense of place, the texture and form of the trees. But this work also speaks to art institutions in the Netherlands, where landscape painting had become a celebrated genre. Artists like Mauve found themselves in a complex position, at once participating in and helping to shape that tradition. As historians, we might look at exhibition records or art criticism from the period to better understand how Mauve's work was received. Understanding the institutions and social expectations that shaped the art world is key to understanding the art itself.